Composite spinning and twisting ring



March 1, 1960 L. R. LADD COMPOSITE SPINNING AND TWISTINQBING Filed p 9, 1954 Fig. 3

IN VEN TOR.

LfiWRf/VCE A. LADD BY of Albrecht Mfg. Co., Sac'o, Maine; Sadie E. Albrecht, executrix of said George F. Albrecht, deceased Application September 9, 1954, Serial No. 454,973 12 Claims. (Cl. 57-120) This invention pertains to textile manufacture, in particular to twistingand spinning rings, and more especial- 1y to rings of the oil-absorbent type, such, for example, as are disclosed in certain patents granted to George Albrecht, among which are Patents Nos. 2,588,193, May 4, 1952, 2,084,756, June 22, 1937, and 2,502,116, May '28, 1950, and relates more especially to a novel ring of this general type and to a method of making such ring.

As pointed out in the above patents, these porous rings are commonly made by a powdered metal process which involves the molding of powdered metal under very high pressure; the sintering of the molded part in a nonoxidizing atmosphere, and the finishing of the sintered rings, for example, by the use of dies or machine tools. Each ring as thus made is a unitary mass of the'selected material, that is to say, all parts of the ring are of substantially the same composition. However, the only part of such a ring which is subjected to wear during use is the relatively small, upper portion along which the traveler moves. In order to obtain a traveler guiding surface which is thus resistant to wear, it is necessary to make use of a metal powder which will provide a fine grain and have the capability of responding to hardening treatment. Because of the greatly increased use of powdered metal in mechanical arts, the cost of the better grades of metal powder suitable for making the hardened traveler guiding portion of the ring has risen very sharply and the price of the rings has necessarily become so high as in a certain degree to limit their use. A further difliculty experienced in the manufacture of these rings is due in part, at least, to the irregular cross-sectional area of the ring, some parts of which are much thicker than others, with the result that during the hardening operation the rings tend to warp or crack and the traveler guiding portion of the ring may assume a Wavy contour. The hardening of these porous, powdered metal rings is much more difficult than that of rings made from solid steel bars or castings, and in spite of expensive experimental work directed to the improvement of the hardening process there is a very high percentage of loss during the hardening operation as 'at present carried out.

The present invention has for principal objects the provision of a novel ring of this general type such as.

to provide the desired wear resistance in that portion of the ring which is subjected to traveler wear and which still possesses the porous, oil-absorbent characteristics of rings of this general type, but which is so devised that Patented Mar. 1, 1960 the hardening operation is substantially reduced; and the cost of the completed ring is so lessened as to make the ring readily available to users who have found the cost of the ordinary prior porous rings prohibitive. Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be pointed out in thefollowing more detailed description and by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a large scale, radial section section through a ring made in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic, fragmentary, radial section illustrative of a common practice in making the customary one-piece, porous metal rings;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary, radial section on the same plane, for example, as that of Fig. 1, but showingthe result of one of the earlier steps in the present process;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, radial section illustrative of a desirable second step in the present process and in particular one of the earlier steps in the production of the traveler guiding element of the ring;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4, but illustrative of the results of a further step;

Fig. 6 is another section similar to Fig. 5, but showing the results of the final step in the production of the traveler guiding element of the ring;

Fig. 7 is' a fragmentary, radial section illustrating a spinning ring of another type but embodying the present invention;

Fig. 8 is a view generally similar to Fig. 7, but illustrating a further modification; and

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary radial section showing the ring of the present invention assembled with a supporting annulus providing an oil reservoir.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 10 designates a porous, oil-absorbent composite spinning or twisting ring embodying the present invention, this ring comprising the traveler guiding annulus 11 designed to receive a conventional C-shaped traveler and the body portion 12 having inner and outer cylindrical surfaces 14 and 15, and which is designed to rest on orbe received in an appropriate supporting annulus A (Fig. 9), for

. example, such as illustrated in the above patent to Albrecht 2,588,193, the parts being so designed as to provide an annular oil channel for feeding oil to the porous ring throughout its entire periphery. As more clear- 1y shown in Fig. 3, the body portion 12 of the ring de- I creases in width towards its upper part, thus providing the relatively narrow neck portion 16 whose upper surface 17 is substantially horizontal and fiat. The traveler guiding annulus 11 rests upon this upper surface 17 of the body portion, the traveler guiding annulus being symmetrical in shape and being so disposed that its center of width is substantially above the mid-point of the surface 17. The traveler guiding annulus 11 is permanently connected to the neck portion 16 by solder or welding metal W (Fig. 1). However, the connection be- 7 tween the annulus 11 and the body portion is such that only that portion of the ring which is subject to traveler ject is to provide a novel method of making spinning or' i twisting rings of the porous, oil-absorbent type whereby: difficulties commonly experienced in the hardening of the travelervguiding portion of such rings are substantially eliminated; the loss through cracking or warping during the passage of oil from the porous body portion to the traveler guiding annulus is not substantially interrupted.

To insure this condition the solder or weldingmet-al may be arranged as spaced spots to unite the two annuli only at circumferentially spaced points.

In preparing this composite ring 10, the body por tion may be made from powdered metal in accordance with customary practice, wherein the selected material is first molded or briquetted under very high pressure and then sintered, but in accordance with the present process it is unnecessary to perform certain steps which' are customarily employed in the making of such porous rings, such as the machining, hardening and finishing of. the body portion after it has been molded and sintered- 7 Moreover, because the body portion is not required to withstand wear, it may be made of a material which is not capable of being hardened to acceptable wear-resistant hardness. Thus the material employed may be sub stantially cheaper than that customarily required to make a commercially acceptable ring. For instance, the major part of the material employed in making the body portion may be powdered scrap of almost any composition. Or it may, for example, be of a suitable synthetic plastic for instance nylon, with or without the incorporation of reinforcing material such as fiber glass. However, regardless of the material, it will be of porous, oil-absorbent structure.

For the traveler guiding portion of the ring a fine gradi of powdered steel or iron may be used, with, for example, two to five percent of aluminum, when slow lubrication is desired, or from five to ten percent when more rapid lubrication is desired (as in worsted spinning), together with customary percentages of copper to provide the requisite binder. Such a traveler guiding ring may readily be hardened to a Brinell hardness of from eighty to eightyfive.

While it is possible to make each traveler guiding annulus 11 singly, that is, by starting with a blank of dimensions appropriate to make a single annulus, it is preferred, as illustrated in Figs. 4, 5 and 6, to start with a blank or embryo annulus 22 (indicated in dotted lines) of a radial thickness substantially equalling the maximum radial thickness of the finished annulus 11, but of an axial thickness exceeding that of a plurality of the desired traveler guiding annuli stacked one on another. Thus as indicated in Fig. 4, the original annular blank may be of the contour generally indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 4 having the outer and inner circumferential cylindrical surfaces 23 and 24 and the upper and lower surfaces 25 and 25a respectively. This blank will be made of a material such as above suggested, that is to say, a material which, as a result of the molding or pressing and sintering operations, will be dense and uniform and which is capable of being hardened to a hardness making it appropriate for use as a traveler guiding element. The blank 22 may first be prepared by the customary molding or briquetting operation and then sintered. It is then machined to bring it approximately to the shape indicated in full lines in Fig. 4 so as to provide the united, embryo traveler guiding annuli 23a, 23b and 230 respectively, these several parts then being separated along the planes A-B and CD so as to form individual annuli, substantially like the one illustrated in Fig. 5, each such annulus including one or more portions 26 projecting from its radial face. Each such annulus may now be machined to remove such projection 26 and to provide parallel upper and lower faces 18 and 19 respectively (Fig. 6). This annulus may, for example, be of the order of one-eighth of an inch in radial width and of the order of one-sixteenth of an inch in thickness. The annulus 11b as thus formed (Fig. 6) and which is of symmetrical radial section, is now subjected to a hardening treatment, and since it is of symmetrical section, the tendency of such an annulus to warp or crack during the hardening operation is very greatly less than is true of a spinning ring of customary shape, wherein the thin traveler guiding portion and the thick body portion are integrally united and thus concomitantly subjected to the hardening treatment. After the annulus 11b has thus been hardened, it may be ground or polished and this annulus, with its smooth upper and lower faces 18 and 19 and its rounded edges 2:) a d 22 is then assembled with the previously prepared body portion 12, and is permanently united to the latter by the Welding or soldering W or other appropriate fastening means.

This operation, as above indicated, results in the formationof a composite ring wherein tne traveler guiding portion is of one materialand the body portion of another, andmakes it possible not only to reduce the cost of the material employed by using a cheaper material for the more-massive body portion, but it-also greatly-reduces loss from warping or cracking during the hardening and finishing operations. There is also a saving in material because of the lesser amount wasted in machining operatrons.

Fig. 2 by contrast illustrates diagrammatically the usual method of making spinning rings, wherein there is first provided a ring blank B having inner and outer cylindrical surfaces B and B the blank thus provided being of substantially rectangular contour in radial section. Then, in order to produce a ring R of the customary shape and of unitary construction, it is necessary to remove, by machining allot this rectangular area, except that shown in full lines in Fig. 2.

In Fig. 7, the present method of procedure is illustrated in the production of a ring of the type which employs a hook-shaped traveler. In this instance, the ring 10a comprises the traveler guiding annulusdla and the body portion 12a, including the relatively narrow neck portion 16a to which the traveler guiding annulus 11a is secured by solder or welding at W. In this instance, the annulus 11a is somewhat different in shape from that illustrated in Fig. 5, comprising an integral'projection 26 on its inner circumference, which in this instance is employed for attaching the traveler guiding annulus to the neck portion of the ring.

in Fig. 8, a slight further modification is illustrated wherein the body portion 12b of the ring has the narrow upstanding neck portion 16b and the traveler guiding annulus 11b has the symmetrically arranged radial fin 26b whose outer margin rests on and is welded at W2 to the upper surface of neck 16b, thus spacing the annulus 11b from the inner surface of the neck 16b.

The composite ring as hereinabove described is employed in the same way as the customary oil-absorbent porous ring, but because of the fact that the traveler guiding portion of the ring is made of a different material and'by a different process from that used in making the body portion, it has been found possible to make the traveler guiding portion of superior wear-resisting quality, as compared with that of the best rings made by prior practice, while at the same time, as above pointed out, reducing cost through saving in the amount of material and labor employed; through the possibility of using a relatively cheap material for the major portion of the ring, and in the reduction in loss due to defects introduced during manufacture. Certain of these advantages would be obtainable even though the base as well as the traveler guiding annulus were of expensive material.

While certain desirable embodiments of the invention have herein been described by way of example, and certain specific materials have been suggested as useful, and while a useful sequence of process steps has been indicated, it is to be understood that the invention is broadly inclusive of any and all modifications in any of the above respects, such as falls within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Method of making a spinning and twisting ring which comprises as steps forming a porous oil-absorbent base annulus of a selected and relatively cheap powdered material, forming a porous oil-absorbent embryo traveler guiding annulus of a higher grade powdered material, machining said embryo annulus to the aproximate di mensions requisite to constitute the desired traveler guiding portion of the ring, hardening the machined annulus and finishing it, and permanently securing the finished annulus to the baseannulus in accurately coaxial relation to the latter thereby to provide a composite ring, all portions of which are oil-absorbent.

2. That-method of making a spinning or twisting ring which comprises as steps forming from powdered metal an embryo traveler guiding annulus of a radial thickness equaling the maximum radial thickness of the desired traveler guiding annulus and of an axial thickness which isa multiple of the axial thickness of the desired traveler- 3. Method of making a spinning or twisting ring which comprises as steps forming an embryo traveler-guiding annulus of pressed powdered metal and of a radial thickness at least equaling the maximum radial thickness of the desired guiding annulus, sintering the resultant embryo annulus, machining said sintered embryo annulus to approximately the dimensions of the desired travelerguiding annulus, hardening and finishing the machined annulus, providing a base annulus of porous oil-absorbent material, and permanently uniting the finished traveler-guiding annulus in accurately coaxial relation to the base annulus.

4. Method as set forth in claim 3, further characterized in that during the finishing of each of said annuli its radial faces are made smooth and accurately parallel.

5. That method of making a spinning or twisting ring which comprises as steps providing a traveler guiding annulus which is symmetrical in shape in radial section and which is fine-grained, dense, wear-resistant, and of a hardness of the order of from 80 to 85 Brinell but being porous, providing a porous oil-absorbent base annulus which is of softer material than the traveler guiding annulus, assembling the traveler guiding and base annuli in coaxial relation and permanently uniting them.

6. A spinning or twisting ring of the oil-absorbent type including a traveler-guiding annulus and a base annulus, the traveler-guiding annulus being porous and relatively hard and wear-resistant as compared with the base annulus, the base annulus also being porous but relatively soft as compared with the traveler-guiding annulus, said annuli being coaxial and each wholly external to the other but having opposed, closely adjacent surfaces, and means permanently bonding the annuli to each other.

7. A spinning or twisting ring including a travelerguiding annulus and a base annulus, both of said annuli being of pressed powdered metal and being porous and oil-absorbent, the traveler-guiding annulus being symmetrical in radial section, accurately dimensioned, surface finished, close grained, hard and wear-resistant, and the base annulus having a surface finish such as results from molding and being relatively coarser grained and softer than the traveler-guiding annulus, each of said annuli being wholly external to the other, said annuli having faces which are opposed and closely adjacent, and means permanently bonding the annuli to' each other.

8. A composite spinning or twisting ring designed to be assembled with a support of non-absorbent material, said ring including a traveler-guiding annulus and a base annulus, the traveler-guiding annulus being of pressed powdered metal and being porous and oil-absorbent, the traveler-guiding annulus being smooth and accurately finished and of a Brinell hardness of from 80 to 85, and

the base annulus being oil-absorbent and of a material softer than that of the traveler-guiding annulus, said annuli being wholly external to each other and being assembled in coaxial relation, and means permanently bonding the annuli together only at circumferentially spaced points.

9. That method of making a spinning or twisting ring of the kind which includes a traveler-guiding annulus and a base annulus, said method comprising as steps molding powdered metal to forman oil-absorbent embryo travelerguiding annulus of symmetrical, radial section, hardening'said embryo annulus and finishing it to final dimensions, providing a porous oil-absorbent base annulus having a body portion and an upstanding neck portion which is narrower than the body portion, arranging the travelerguiding annulus in coaxial relation to the base annulus and in contact with the neck portion of the latter and permanently bonding the traveler-guiding annulus to said neck portion of the base annulus.

10. A spinning or twisting ring of pressed powdered metal and which comprises a traveler-guiding portion and a base portion, both traveler-guiding portion and the base portion being of porous oil-absorbent character, the traveler-guiding portion being accurately dimensioned and smoothly polished and of a Brinell hardness of from to and the base being relatively softer, and means permanently uniting the traveler-guiding portion in accurately coaxial relation to the base portion.

11. A spinning and twisting ring of pressed powdered metal and which comprises a traveler-guiding portion and a base portion, both the traveler-guiding portion and the base portion being of porous, oil-absorbent character, the traveler-guiding portion being relatively hard and wearresistant and consisting of a fine grained annulus of the order of one-eighth of an inch in radial width and of the order of one-sixteenth of an inch in thickness and the base portion being relatively softer and coarser grained, and means permanently uniting the traveler-guiding annulus to the base portion.

12. A spinning and twisting ring designed to be assembled with a supporting annulus of non-absorbent material, said ring comprising a traveler-guiding portion and a base portion, both traveler-guiding portion and base portion being porous and oil-absorbent, the traveler-guiding portion being of powdered metal and being wearresistant, accurately dimensioned and smoothly polished, and of a hardness of the order of from 80 to 85 Brinell, and the base portion being predominantly of an organic material, substantially softer than the traveler guiding portion of the ring, and means permanently uniting the traveler-guiding portion in accurately coaxial relation to the base portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,745,835 Merrill Feb. 4, 1930 2,084,756 Albrecht June 22, 1937 2,233,460 Stahl Mar. 4, 1941 2,403,255 Albrecht July 2, 1946 2,452,323 Platzer Oct. 26, 1948 2,503,533 Williams Apr. 11, 1950 2,565,578 Stahl Aug. 28, 1951 2,588,193 Albrecht Mar. 4, 1952 2,618,050 Thomas Nov. 18, 1952 2,718,112 Wayson Sept. 20, 1955 

